


the bars that separate us

by gins_potter



Series: Discordix Weekly Prompts [1]
Category: Winx Club
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Guardian Riven, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Singer AU, Singer Musa, Sort Of, cell mates, idk how that got in there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:53:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25543918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gins_potter/pseuds/gins_potter
Summary: Destruction of property, jail cells, and a slightly fangirling Riven.Or, a Musa/Riven take on the prompt: we've both been arrested and we're stuck in the same jail cell we won't be bailed out until morning so you might as well tell me your story.Discordix Weekly Prompt 20/07/20 (#1)
Relationships: Aisha | Layla/Nabu (Winx Club) (mentioned), Bloom/Sky (Winx Club) (mentioned), Musa/Riven (Winx Club)
Series: Discordix Weekly Prompts [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1850965
Kudos: 95





	the bars that separate us

**Author's Note:**

> So the Winx Club server I'm in have started doing a weekly writing prompt, and this is the first one :D
> 
> A few notes:  
> \- i might not upload every week (just whenever i feel inspired) and they'll usually be around a couple k in length  
> \- riven kind of turned into a big of a Singer!Musa fangirl in this one (which i kind of love)  
> \- i use some bits of lore from my re-write series but you don't have to read that to understand or enjoy these. the only relevant bit for this story is that the justice fairies aren't just on earth and basically take the role of the justice system for the magical dimension.  
> \- Ghatrif and Zhengsheng are my fanon last names for Riven and Musa respectively.

Riven heard her arrival long before he ever caught a glimpse of her. Propped uncomfortably between the humming magical bars and the rough stone of the back wall, he revelled in the complete silence of the Magix City police station he was currently confined to. They must have had a quiet night because he was the only current occupant of the some dozen cells that made up the hallway.

At first he didn’t even recognise the noise for what it was. But eventually they were close enough, and he realised it was the approaching roar of many, many people, and judging by the noise level they were all congregating around the front of the police station. Suddenly the volume ratcheted up another notch, becoming so loud that even in the bowels of the station, Riven began to hear snatches of what had to be the voices of paparazzi and fans.

“- here over here-”

“-what happened tonight-”

“-oh my god-”

“-how will this affect-”

“-what have you got to say for yourself-”

“-love you so much-”

The volume ticked up again for a moment before ceasing altogether, and Riven wondered idly if one of the officers had placed a sound muffling charm on the door.

When they finally did bring her in, Riven had to admit that his first thought was that she certainly didn’t look worth the attention of the screaming paparazzi outside, nor the four officers as well as the captain of the station who were escorting her to the cell adjacent from Riven’s own. She had pretty, delicate features, but wore no makeup and her hair was scraped back into a messy knot. Not to mention she was tiny, having to be near a foot shorter than Riven, and wore only a hoodie zipped haphazardly and baggy, grey sweatpants.

“Got you a bit of star power to keep you company, Ghatrif,” the captain grunted, taking the magically reinforced cuffs off the girl’s wrists.

The girl, who could be no older than Riven himself, scoffed something unintelligible and threw herself down onto a bench that he knew from experience was hard as a rock.

“Did you need anything, Miss Zhensheng?” one of the officers asked eagerly, but the girl ignored him and slumped further down on the bench, propping her sneakered feet up on the bars that separated her cell from Riven’s.

“I’m sure Miss Zhensheng will be fine until the morning when a justice fairy will be available to deal with both of them,” the captain said, his hard glare sliding from the girl to Riven, who silently held his hand up in the universal ‘ _ What? I’m innocent _ ’ gesture.

Another of the officers bit her lip before reaching up to whisper something in the captain’s ear. Immediately his face twisted in annoyance.

“No, you can’t have her autograph. Now go, you’ve got work to do.” He shooed the four officers out, and closed the door firmly behind him, leaving the two of them to each other’s company.

“Quite the fanclub you’ve got there.” Riven couldn’t help the words that slipped out, nor the snide tone that he said them in; his friends were always telling him he had no filter, and that it was probably the reason he was always getting into fights. The way Riven saw it, he won most of the time, so there was hardly a problem.

The girl, who had turned to watch the captain leave with narrowed eyes, abruptly looked back at him, their gazes meeting for the first time. Something, be it her face or her last name, tugged at Riven’s memory but he couldn’t place where he might know her from. Letting any traces of curiosity fade from his expression, he raised an eyebrow, silently prompting her to speak.

Rather than say anything however, she merely flipped him off before shoving her hands into the pockets of her hoodie as she looked away again. The action from the pint sized girl surprised Riven enough that a chuckle escaped him. A muscle in the girl’s jaw popped but still she said nothing.

Since she clearly had no interest in conversing with him, Riven felt no obligation to cease staring at her, deciding to pass the time by pondering on where he might know her from. The school for specialists Riven had attended had been all boys but he didn’t think she’d been a student at the local school for fairies either, he was sure he would have remembered her. Riven wasn’t much for watching television or movies so he didn’t think that’s where he’d seen her, and with the septum ring hooked through her nose and her fierce eyes he didn’t think she was a member of royalty either.

Riven worked as a Guardian for the dimension so it was very possible he’d saved her on one of his adventures - or misadventures as they sometimes turned out to be - but somehow Riven didn’t think it was that either. There was something hard about this girl, a tough exterior that begged for anyone to fuck with her and endure the (probably painful) consequences. He couldn’t imagine her as the kind of damsel in distress he regularly encountered.

Apparently sick of his staring she slowly turned to look at him again, something dangerous in her expression. It only made Riven want to push her further to see what would happen.

“Can I help you?” She spoke slowly, her voice low and husky, wrapping around Riven like an embrace, and as she did he knew instantly where he knew her from.

“You’re that singer. Maia.”

She cocked her head, seeming not to know what to make of him. “Musa,” she finally said.

Riven clicked his fingers, “That’s it.” He dragged his mind back over everything he had ever heard about this girl, Musa. “What would a media darling like you be doing in a place like this?”

His words had the desired effect because she hissed out a breath. It was well known that Musa Zhengsheng was far from a media darling as it were, in fact Riven was sure some well meaning fan out there had documented every run in Musa had ever had with the paparazzi. He was even more sure that that list would be as long if not longer than Riven’s own rap sheet.

Musa bared her teeth in a shark-like smile. “Destruction of property.”

Another shred of information came back to Riven. “Bet your label loved that.”

Musa Zhengsheng had made a very recent, very public, and very controversial split from her record label, and had been only too happy to show her contempt for them in subsequent interviews, accusing them of stifling her creative license. Riven had scoffed and rolled his eyes when his friends had discussed the juicy gossip with clear interest but had secretly followed the story himself. Musa had played a concert the eve of the news breaking, and Riven could still remember shivering as he watched a clip of her spreading her arms and singing unapologetically to 100,000 adoring fans “ _ No one can be just like me any way.” _

Watching the clip, Riven had believed her then, and looking into her fierce, dark eyes now, he still believed it.

Sitting in the cell she stared into his eyes unflinchingly. “Good.”

Riven’s lip curled in distaste as he found admiration and irritation running through him in equal parts. There was no doubt she was a force to be reckoned with, but there was also no uncertainty in his mind that the morning would bring an overpaid lawyer and manager to bail Musa out for what would become a night of mere inconvenience and performative rebellion. Riven in the meantime would be left to deal with whatever punishment the justice fairy deemed appropriate for him.

“So, that’s it then? Just a fun way to say fuck you to your old record label.”

Musa surprised him by blinking and looking away first.

“Yeah,” she said, voice sounding thick. “Pretty much.”

Riven jolted in surprise and realisation. “But it’s not, is it? You’re full of it. That’s not why you’re here at all.”

Musa sat up swiftly and pushed up from the bench, pacing around the cell restlessly. “‘Course it is,” she said briskly, refusing to look at him. “That’s exactly why I’m here.”

He scoffed, unwinding his legs so he could stand and approach the bars. “Bullshit.”

Musa turned on her heel and stomped up to the bars. “Fuck you,” she spat, looking livid, and despite her short size, Riven found himself glad for the magic separating them. “Who are you? Some loser who’s probably got a rap sheet a mile long and doesn’t give a shit about anyone but himself? Who are you to judge me or think you know me? You don’t even know me.”

“I know that after tonight you’ll go back to jet setting around with your rich friends, not a care in the universe, raking in the money with that pretty, little voice of yours.”

“You don’t even know me,” Musa said again, but this time Riven swore he saw a flicker of hurt in her eyes.

She turned her back on him but didn’t move away, instead sliding down the magical bars until she was sitting on the hard ground. Riven watched her do it, not feeling quite so badass, nor so justified in his anger, before sinking to the ground as well, propping his back against the bars. The floor was cold but Musa’s back was warm against his, a fact that he tried to ignore.

“My best friend’s fiance died a month ago,” Musa said bluntly, breaking their impasse. Riven blinked and turned his head to try and catch a glimpse of her face, but she remained looking forward. “I had weeks left of my tour and I felt like the worst friend in the world that I couldn’t be with her through it all. I only had a few concerts left so I asked if we could reschedule them so I could come home early. But my fucking label wouldn’t have it, thought it would make them look bad. Well, I hope they look downright shitty now.”

“Please tell me the destruction of property charge was for smashing up their offices.”

Riven couldn’t see her face, but he thought maybe she was smiling as she said, “Nah, my revenge on them was not letting them make money off me anymore. I was up for contract renewal with them and they actually had the balls to send a first draft over. I ripped it up, danced on the pieces, then set them on fire.”

Riven couldn’t help but grin at the mental image. Then he realised something. “So if it wasn’t their property you destroyed, then who…”

“I  _ finally _ got home tonight, and went straight to my friend’s place. I had to get her out of there, it was too full of memories of the two of them, but of course there was a million fucking people waiting outside. I can handle it when they come for me, but my family? My friends? Fuck that shit. So when one of those bastards shoved his camera in her face and asked how she was coping with her fiance’s death, I fucking lost it. I- well, let’s just say that camera is not going to be taking pictures anymore.”

“Good. Lowlife deserved it.”

“Maybe. But now my friend has to spend another night without me.”

“You’re a good friend, Musa, and she’ll know that.”

She didn’t answer for a beat, and when she did, all she said was, “So, what’d they get you for?”

Riven heard it for the clear attempt to change the subject that it was, and didn’t push her anymore. Instead he sighed, staring across his cell as he tried to figure out how to tell the story without coming across as totally lame. “B&E.”

“Oh yeah?” Musa asked, still sounding morose. “Get anything good.”

“No,” Riven said glumly, then sighed again. “My best friend, we came up in foster care together for a while before she was adopted out. The only thing she has left of her birth family is this necklace. When she broke up with her asshole ex she left most of her stuff behind at his place because she just wanted to get away from him. He gave back some of it, but the fucker knew how much that necklace meant to her and he’s been holding it over her head ever since, trying to get her to get back with him.”

Musa made a disgusted sound low in her throat. “Psycho.”

“Basically. She tells him there’s no way it’s gonna happen, she’s met someone new, nice guy, and she’s finally happy, so of course he decides he’s not handing it over then.”

“So, you thought you could break in there and steal it back for her.”

Despite himself, Riven smiled. “Something like that. And failed miserably. It’s uh-” he coughed uncomfortably. “It’s been a while since I’ve done something like that, I was rusty.”

“Still pretty noble though. I’m sure your friend appreciates the effort.”

“Nah, she’ll probably smack me over the head when I get out of here, and call me an idiot for good measure.”

Musa gave a surprised cackle of laughter. “I think I’d like this girl.”

Riven chuckled. “Probably. She’d like you too, probably more than she likes me.”

He felt a finger poke his side, and he glanced over his shoulder to find that Musa had scooted around and was looking at him.

She bit her lip. “I’m sorry I said you were a loser who didn’t care about anyone else.”

“That’s alright, I told you that you were a stuck up rich girl with no problems.”

“Truce?” Musa asked, sticking her hand through the bars.

Riven took it and shook, enjoying the flare of warmth at the feeling of her skin on his. “Truce.”

**Author's Note:**

> So, there's the first one for you, I hope you enjoyed it xx


End file.
